Barrel-cover attachment



B. F. FIELD.

BARREL COVER ATTACHMENT.

Patented May 22, 1888.

wyvggyww 4/o/oyx/x 1 Q M gwggvy 4%! //g &

UNITED STATES PATENT UFFICE,

BENJAMIN F. FIELD, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

BARREL COVER ATTACHMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 383,349, dated May 22, 1888.

Application filed October 19, 1887.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN F. FIELD, of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin BarrelGover Attachments; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and to the figures and letters of reference marked thereon.

The object of this invention is to provide a simple, cheap, and durable fastening for the heads or covers of barrels, tubs, 850., such as are now commonly employed for displaying commodities, and particularly adapted for the packing and transportation of fruit, vegetables, the.

To meet the requirements of the trade it is essential that the head or cover, usually of wire or other open or perforated material should, with its attachments, occupy substantially the same relative position as the head of an ordinary barrel-that is to say, it should fit within the open end of a full barrel or other receptacle without projecting or standing above the ends of the'staves, and it should be capable of being readily secured in position and as quickly released. At thesametimethefasteningshould be of a character to prevent accidental dis placement, as when the barrel is rolled ortransported from place to place.

My present invention is especially designed with a View of embodying these and other desirable features and at the same time furnish a cover or attachment which, while partaking of all the desirable qualities of a detachable cover, is as well adapted to perform all the functions of a permanent cover or head.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a top plan view of a cover illustrating the application of my invention. Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view illustrating the cover as applied to the open end of a barrel. Fig. 3 is a detail view illustrating one of the lockingdogs.

Similar letters of referencein the several figures indicate the same parts.

The letter A designates a removable head or cover, preferably composed of a series of wires, a, interwoven as shown, and secured at the margin to a stout iron or other ring, b, the

Serial No. 252,835. (No model.)

whole being of such size or dimensions as to fit within the open end of the barrel, as shown in Fig. 2.

Upon the upper or outer face of the barrel or I cover A is located a series of longitudinallymovable dogs, B, each of the latter being formed or provided with a point, e, and a shoulder or projection, d, and held in position upon the head by two or more wires or loops, e, one in front and another in rear of the projection d, to prevent the several dogs from falling out or becoming displaced and lost when the cover is removed.

Preferably four dogs, B, are applied to the upper surface of each head A, and when the latter is inserted in a barrel in place of the permanent head, or for temporary use, as shown in Fig. 2, the points of the dogs are driven into the staves or sides of the barrel by blows delivered by a hammer or other similar implement upon the studs or projections 11, and when it is desired to remove the cover the dogs are in like manner withdrawn or detached by blows upon the studs or projections.

As will be observed upon an inspection of Fig. 2, no part or portion of the cover or its attachments projects or stands above the ends of the staves; hence all liability of accidental withdrawal of the dogs by contact with other objects, as when rolling or transporting the barrel, is obviated.

It will be observed that each one of the several dogs employed is independentlybut loosely applied to the head or cover, and in practice this has been found of the utmost importance.

Asis well understood, barrels are frequently subjected to blows and compression, both upon the sides and ends and in a direction to displace and possibly detach the point of the dog from the wood; but by attaching the several dogs separately and loosely to the cover, so that each is free to move upon or with relation thereto, each dog can yield and follow the movements of that portion of the barrel to which it is firmly secured without in any de gree affecting the position of the head or that of the other dogs, so that even should one or more of the dogs be accidentally detached the remaining dogs would retain their position and hold the head firmly in place.

When, by pressure upon the sides of the barrel or the weight of the materials contained therein, the open end or head is compressed until it assumes an elliptical form, the dogs in line with or nearest the major axis will be drawn with the wood and caused to slide outward upon the head or cover, while those nearer the minor axis will be moved in the op posite direction without in either case effecting a separation of the dogs from the walls or sides of the barrel, as would undoubtedly be the case were the dogs confined to the head in such manner as to prevent the free longitudinal movement.

The dogs 13 are each preferably composed of afiat plate or rod formed at one end with shouldersf in rear of the point, to prevent the dog from being driven too far into the wood.

The studs or projections d, upon which the blows of the hammer are received, should be made strong, and to this end they are preferably formed of blocks d, of metal, united and secured in place upon the dogs by a rivet, (1

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new is- 1. In a removable head or cover such as described, the fiat circular disk, in combination with the series of pointed dogs, each dog provided with a stud or projection, and confining rings or loops applied to the disk and over the dogs, the one in front and the other in rear of the said stud or projection, substantially as described.

2. In combination with the open end of a barrel, a flat head or cover fitting entirely within the end and provided with a series of inde pendent fiat dogs, each dog being provided with a point and a stud or projection lying below the upper or outer end of the walls of the barrel, and confining rings or loops loosely engaging said dogs in front and rear of said stud or projection to hold them in position upon the head, substantially as described.

3. In combination with the fiat cover or head A, the series of independent flat dogs B, each provided with a point and shoulders on its outer end, and a metal block secured to its upper surface by a rivet, as described, and confining rings or loops secured to the head or cover in front and rear of the metal blocks on each of the dogs, substantially as described.

BENJAMIN F. FIELD.

Witnesses:

FRED F. CHURCH, MELVILLE CHURCH. 

